Ruben Amorim Backs Bayindir Despite Blunder in Manchester United Loss

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has put his weight behind his goalkeeper Altay Bayindir despite his mistake costing the club a loss against Arsenal at Old Trafford in their opening match of the Premier League 2025-26 season.

In the 13th minute of the game, Bayindir could not collect the ball cleanly from Declan Rice’s corner, and Riccardo Calafiori had an easy header to put the Gunners in front. In the end, it was the solitary goal of the match that gave the visitors all three points.

“I’m happy with the three goalkeepers,” said Amorim. “He [Bayindir] chooses to get the ball, but he’s getting pushed. That is my feeling when I see the play.

“You choose to push a player [out of the way] or to get the ball in that moment. He needs to use his hands to catch the ball, not push players. He chooses to push players and let the ball pass.”

Before the match, the Portuguese manager had confirmed that Andre Onana was fit to play against Arsenal. Amorim said Tom Heaton and Bayindir did a good job through the pre-season.

“I didn’t drop Onana from the squad,” said Amorim. “It’s not the case of dropping Ornana. It’s not putting Andre Onana in just one week without seeing the game, without time, with training.

“Tom [Heaton] and Bayindir, during the preseason, they did a good job.”

New signings like Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo were able to impress, and Amorim said his team played better than the tourists.

“It’s that feeling that we played better,” said Amorim. “We were the better team, but in the end, we lost the game. I’m really proud of the work that they put in the field, and that is important to move forward.

“We proved today that we can win any game in the Premier League, especially against a great team like Arsenal, and we were the better team.”

Manchester United will next take on Fulham on Sunday at Craven Cottage.